Numbers 27:12-23 / Changes in Leadership
📖 Scripture
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go up this mountain in the Abarim Range and see the land I have given the Israelites.
13 After you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was,
14 for when the community rebelled at the waters in the Desert of Zin, both of you disobeyed my command to honor me as holy before their eyes.” (These were the waters of Meribah Kadesh, in the Desert of Zin.)
15 Moses said to the Lord,
16 “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community
17 to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”
18 So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit of leadership, and lay your hand on him.
19 Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly and commission him in their presence.
20 Give him some of your authority so the whole Israelite community will obey him.
21 He is to stand before Eleazar the priest, who will obtain decisions for him by inquiring of the Urim before the Lord. At his command he and the entire community of the Israelites will go out, and at his command they will come in.”
22 Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and had him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole assembly.
23 Then he laid his hands on him and commissioned him, as the Lord instructed through Moses.
✅ Scripture Summary
✅ Memory verse
✅ Reflection
Ending Well (27:12–17)
Israel is preparing to enter Canaan, but Moses’s task is coming to an end. The responsibility of leading the next generation of God’s people will belong to another. From the top of a high mountain, Moses is blessed to see the land his people will inherit. It is, for God’s servant, a time of reflection. Moses may have considered the successes and failures of the past, but he is also aware of the future. Because Moses cares deeply about the people he has led for many years, he asks God to provide a new leader for the people so that they will not be like sheep without a shepherd. Despite his failures, he looks to the future, seeking God’s blessings on His people.
Take time to reflect on your past failures and successes. What do you need to pray about regarding the future?
Passing the Mantle (27:18–23)
Joshua is God’s chosen servant to lead His people. In a public ceremony, Joshua stands before the congregation and Eleazar the priest as Moses lays his hand on him. Two aspects of leadership stand out here. First, the former leader bestows some of his authority upon the new one. Second, God’s people witness the passing of the mantle. They see Moses acknowledge that his task is complete, and the new leader is blessed to take up God-given authority. However, Joshua will not operate alone. He will have the support of Eleazar the priest who will assist him in his new role. We see an example of a godly change in leadership that is marked by humility, openness, and support.
When have you experienced a change in leadership? What lessons have you learned from the passing of the mantle from Moses to Joshua?
“The fruits of your life are born often in your pain and in your vulnerability and in your losses. The fruits of your life come only after the plow has carved through your land. God wants you to be fruitful.”
– Henri Nouwen
✅ Prayer
✅ Essay
An Act of Selflessness
Being selfless is not something that comes naturally, at least for me. It is a constant struggle to think of others before myself and to put the needs of those around me before my own. My nature seems to constantly resort to selfishness. Oftentimes, without realizing it, I find myself focusing on how others can serve me instead of how I can serve them. This is not the attitude that the Lord asks of us. Philippians 2:3–4 instructs, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
We see a poignant example of this kind of selflessness in Numbers 27:12–23. Earlier in this book, the Lord informed Moses that, because of his disobedience, he would not be leading the people into the promised land. Moses could have been bitter and angry about this. However, because of his love for the Lord, he chose instead to respond with selflessness. Moses’s concern was for those under his care. He asked the Lord to appoint another leader for them so that they would not be like sheep without a shepherd. This showed that Moses’s heart was in the right place before the Lord. He was thinking of the well-being of others instead of his own gain. When our desire is to bless others, we not only honor the Lord but also point others toward Him by being a representation of His selflessness, goodness, and steadfast love.
Written by Natasha Spiers